A health center in Yonkers is aiming to change the maternal outcomes among Black women, who studies show are up to 12 times more likely to die in New York City from pregnancy-related conditions than white mothers.

One woman who sought out help was Alicia Hudson, who wanted to try a natural birth after experiencing two C-sections.

While her doctor didn't recommend it, she connected with Birth from the Earth – a Yonkers nonprofit that provides midwifery care and child birth education to women of color. They connected Hudson with resources so she could deliver her third and fourth children naturally at home.

"You don't think that that is something that you can actually experience or something that people of color do," she told News 12.

Bringing resources and education to women of color like Alicia is the goal of a new facility in Yonkers called Earth Groundz.

Nubia Earth Martin, the president of Birth from the Earth, says the partnership of several organizations created the facility in the downtown area specifically to make these resources more accessible to women of color.

"We don't want any mothers or families to feel fearful that they are not going to survive their pregnancy," said Martin. “…It basically comes down to systemic racism and implicit bias. And that is one of the things we are hoping the center will be able to topple."

The center offers lactation consultation, village baby showers to give pregnant women much needed supplies and birthing workshops.

Earth Groundz is part of a countywide initiative called “Black Women Girl Child,” which is aimed at improving maternal health outcomes for black women in Westchester County.